РУССКИЙ
11:43 27.04.2026 •
International Security Conference in Moscow-2025 with more than 100 participating states
Photo: VNA
The West is doomed to failure because it fails to understand Russia's very nature, writes Almasry Alyoum. Russia is not a besieged fortress, but a rising force that attracts other international players.
The geostrategic concept underlying Russian political thinking is not so much "dominance," as it is understood in the West, but sovereignty, which has existential significance. For Moscow, sovereignty is not a tool of diplomatic bargaining, but a form of historical legitimacy rooted in the continent's very geography. Russia, controlling the "heart" of Eurasia—a colossal expanse of 17.1 million square kilometers—also possesses some of the world's largest natural gas reserves.
A 2025 study by the Dutch think tank HCCS identified seven cognitive biases that dominated Western analysis of the Russian landscape: The most significant of these was the assumption that "rationality" is understood identically in Moscow and Washington. While Western political systems are typically limited to an electoral horizon of a few years, the Russian leadership thinks in terms of a longer timeframe, spanning decades. Russian time is not Western time. Unlike systems where legitimacy is regularly renewed through electoral cycles, in the Russian model it relies heavily on historical continuity and the idea of the state as a guarantor of security.
The Russian SPFS, the Chinese CIPS, and the BRICS Bridge project, which has already conducted over forty pilot transactions, are consistent steps toward the formation of a parallel financial network. Even the digital ruble, which already has 2,500 wallets, should be viewed in a broader context: Moscow is building the infrastructure for a world in which countries can conduct payments and exchange goods without going through Washington. This does not mean that the alternative system is already fully formed. However, this indicates the beginning of a long-term process, the consequences of which will only be felt over time.
In the Middle East, Russia has become an important arbitrator that cannot be ignored. The Persian Gulf countries have not joined Western sanctions. Why? Because they see Moscow as a partner that does not interfere in their internal affairs, does not impose human rights conditions, and provides them with weapons and political stability during crises. The Russians are selling not "values," but "services": security, weapons, and protection from sanctions. This simple transaction makes Moscow a desirable player in a region tired of Western "messianic rhetoric."
Russia is not so much "besieged" as it is building and expanding a network of alternative foreign policy and economic ties. At the UN, 52 countries refused to condemn Russia. The BRICS group, which added new members in 2024, has become the de facto platform for a multipolar system. In official Russian discourse, the "Global South" is no longer marginalized, but rather a "global majority."
The most important thing here is to understand that Russia is not a "problem" in the international system, but rather the engine of a deeper transformation. The world is moving toward multipolarity, in which no single center of power enjoys undisputed dominance. Viewing it as an "isolated state" risks misrepresenting the era itself. Russia is not isolated; it simply doesn't play by Western rules.
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